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Missouri Leopold winner credits cover crops

The winner of a prestigious conservation award combines sustainable farming practices to stop erosion. John Scherder uses rotational grazing, grass waterways and terraces to keep soil from eroding, but he tells Brownfield the most important practice he uses is the planting of cover crops.

“Not only do you stop erosion, but you’ve got the soil health issue underneath the ground,” Scherder told Brownfield Ag News. “I think with the earthworms and microbes and all the little critters that you can’t even see that are there by the millions, if you can keep those growing with green root matter, I think that’s very important.”

Scherder, who farms with his wife Sandy and their daughter, Holly Delgman, and son-in-law, Curtis Delgman, is the latest Missouri Leopold Conservation Award winner, accepted the honor at the Missouri Governor’s Conference on Agriculture. Scherder grows corn, soybeans, wheat, hay, and beef cattle. He says it’s hard to put a dollar amount saved from any one conservation practice.

“All these things will add to your bottom line in the end,” said Scherder, “plus you’re keeping your farm in a better condition than it was when you started, whether it be pasture or crops or whatever.”

The Leopold Conservation Award is presented by the Sand County Foundation in partnership with Missouri Farmers Care, the Missouri Soybean Merchandising Council and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service.

The Scherders farm about 3,500 acres near Frankford, Missouri.